School Committee Approves Turners Falls Mascot Review

After public comments and an extensive discussion by the board, a proposal to review the Turners Falls High School mascot was approved by the Gill-Montague Regional School District on Tuesday night. The committee passed the proposal unanimously, with a plan to hold at least two public forums on the issue and focus on public participation and education before creating and approving a plan to change the mascot.

“I’m really glad that the process moved forward and I’m really hoping that there’s going to be an opportunity for native people to have their voices be heard,” Rhonda Anderson, a member of the Inupiaq-Athabaskan Native American tribe, said after the decision. She had spoken in favor of removing the mascot.